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An alternative healer has been jailed for 10 years over the death of a diabetic woman who stopped taking her insulin at his slapping therapy workshop.

Hongchi Xiao, 61, was previously found guilty of the gross negligence manslaughter of 71-year-old Danielle Carr-Gomm at a week-long retreat at Cleeve House in Seend, Wiltshire, in October 2016.

Xiao was sentenced to 10 years in prison, plus a five-year extended licence period, today at Winchester Crown Court.

The judge, Mr Justice Bright, said Mrs Carr-Gomm’s “untimely death was a tragedy for her and all of those who loved her”.

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Xiao was handed a five-year extended licence period in addition to his jail term.

The court previously heard she was one of 30 “keen disciples” who attended the paida lajin therapy event – which sees patients being slapped or slapping themselves repeatedly.

Mrs Carr-Gomm, from Lewes, was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in 1998 and had sought alternatives to her insulin medication because of her vegetarianism and fear of needles.

Danielle Carr-Gomm. Pic: Wiltshire Police
Image:
Danielle Carr-Gomm. Pic: Wiltshire Police

Xiao claimed his method could cure nearly all diseases, including diabetes, and the severe bruising caused by the slapping showed toxins being released from the body.

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Prosecutors said the therapist, from Cloudbreak, California – referred to as “Master Xiao” in the programme for the workshop – knew she was risking death but said “well done” after she told the group she had stopped taking her insulin.

The jury was told he then failed to seek medical help for her when became seriously ill and was “crying on her bed and howling in pain” before she died of diabetic ketoacidosis on the fourth day of the course.

The judge said Xiao had shown “no real sign of clear remorse” as he continues to practice and promote paida lajin in prison.

“I sentence you on the basis you knew from late in the afternoon of day one of the fact that Danielle Carr-Gomm had stopped taking her insulin,” he said. “Furthermore you made it clear to her you supported this.”

Previous manslaughter conviction

Xiao was extradited to face trial from Australia, where he had previously been convicted of the manslaughter of a six-year-old boy who died in April 2015 – 16 months before Mrs Carr-Gomm – when his parents stopped giving him his insulin after attending one of Xiao’s workshops in Sydney.

He told the Winchester jury he stopped working in finance in the early 2000s before travelling to mountainous areas of China, where he learnt various methods relating to natural healing, from fishermen to kung fu masters, before learning paida lajin.

Meaning “slap and stretch”, it is said to be a method of self-healing in which “poisonous waste” is expelled from the body through patting and slapping parts of the body.

Hongchi Xiao
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Hongchi Xiao

The court heard Xiao, who has no medical qualifications or training, had been an “exponent” of the therapy for 10 years and had written a book on it, but it was not recognised by the association of traditional Chinese medicine.

Footage from a 2015 lecture in India shows Xiao teaching attendees how to slap the inside of their elbows as he tells them: “No pain, no gain.”

He brings one man, who says he has heart disease, on stage and slaps his arm to heighten the bruise, telling the crowd: “This is what we call poison blood.”

“The harder, the longer, the more quickly it disappears,” Xiao says.

Mrs Carr-Gomm, who was born in France before moving to the UK aged 21, first joined one of Xiao’s workshops in Bulgaria in July 2016, where she also fell ill after stopping taking her insulin, but restarted and later recovered.

In a video testimonial, she addresses Xiao as “master” and tells him: “You’re definitely a messenger sent by God because you’re starting a revolution to put the power back in the hands of the people to cure themselves and to change the whole system of health care.”

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The court heard participants at the Wiltshire retreat signed a disclaimer form which stated the practice was not “meant for medical treatment” and they fasted for several days, only consuming a Chinese tea.

Prosecutor Duncan Atkinson KC had told the jury by the third day Mrs Carr-Gomm “was vomiting, tired and weak, and by the evening she was howling in pain and unable to respond to questions”.

Hongchi Xiao delivers a 2015 lecture. Pic: CPS
Image:
Hongchi Xiao delivers a 2015 lecture. Pic: CPS

A chef at the workshop, Teresa Hayes, said she was “delirious” and “frothing at the mouth” before she died in the early hours of the following day on 20 October 2016.

‘Desperate to cure herself’

After her death, her son Matthew Carr-Gomm, who lives in New Zealand, said: “She was always keen to try and find alternative methods of treating and dealing with her diabetes, and was very interested in alternative and holistic medicine and therapies.

“I know she was desperate to try and cure herself of this disease.

“She always maintained a healthy lifestyle and was adamant that nothing would stop her from living a full life.

“In recent years, mum was in a great place with a partner, a lovely home and was travelling the world. She had a lot of life left in her.”

Detective Chief Inspector Phil Walker said he was “pleased” to see Xiao behind bars, adding: “He had no medical qualifications yet, despite this, was actively encouraging those in attendance at his workshops to refrain from taking their regular medication, knowing full well the consequences.”

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Customer stabbed to death inside Lloyds bank in Derby – as two men arrested

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Customer stabbed to death inside Lloyds bank in Derby - as two men arrested

Two men have been arrested after a customer was stabbed to death inside a Lloyds bank.

The victim – a man in his 30s – was attacked at the branch in St Peter’s Street, Derby, at around 2.35pm on Tuesday.

He was pronounced dead at the scene, Derbyshire Police said.

A man in his 40s has been arrested on suspicion of murder, while another man in his 30s is being held on suspicion of assisting an offender. Both remain in police custody.

They were detained around 6pm at the same property in Western Road, Normanton.

Detective Inspector Tony Owen said: “No one else was hurt and while the investigation is at an early stage, at this time we are treating it as an isolated incident.”

The victim has not yet been formally identified, but police said his family had been made aware.

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A Lloyds spokesperson said: “We are deeply saddened by the incident at our Derby branch and our thoughts are with those affected.

“We are supporting our colleagues during this difficult time and will co-operate closely with the police.”

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Should some women offenders be spared jail? Female inmates reveal impact of prison

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Should some women offenders be spared jail? Female inmates reveal impact of prison

“Good luck, because it’s a shithole here,” a prisoner shouts as we walk around the grounds at HMP Foston Hall.

Other inmates described this women’s prison in Derbyshire as a “holiday camp”, even “rehab”.

There was no one homogenous view, but there is also not one type of prisoner here – it is home to both murderers and shoplifters.

We’ve come to talk to people ahead of the publication of the sentencing review in the coming days. It’s likely to recommend the scrapping of short sentences for some lower-level crimes, and suggest prison isn’t the best place to punish certain “vulnerable” groups of offenders, including women.

“My kind of theft, I nick chocolate from shops,” inmate Connie Parsons told us as we gathered in her cell.

She’s been convicted of shoplifting nine times and says she’s been in and out of prison since she was 15 years old.

“I normally only get four weeks, three weeks, two weeks. It’s a constant cycle of going out, committing crime,” she said.

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Connie Parsons
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Connie has a teenage son but hasn’t seen him for years

At points, Parsons has been homeless and addicted to drugs.

“I used to just come to prison before to have a little lie down and get myself well… to keep myself safe,” she said. “But this prison, you’re not safe… I never self-harmed before I came to this prison. And now I self-harm quite a lot.”

She has a young teenage son on the outside. “I know this might sound harsh, but I think it’s got to the point now I don’t know what to miss about him. But I think about him every single day,” she said.

‘For lots of women, prison is the right place to be’

We put Parsons’ case to the prisons minister, Lord Timpson, who said it was “really sad to hear”, adding he sees “lots of people like Connie” in the prison system.

Pressed on how some will view Parsons as a repeat offender, perhaps deserving of prison, Lord Timpson said: “For lots of women, prison is the right place to be, but where there are certain circumstances, for example non-violent offences for women… you need to work out what is the right path to make sure they don’t commit further crime.”

Lord Timpson said for someone like Parsons, he’d like to see the use of an intensive supervision court or as he called it “problem-solving court”. These work by judges monitoring the progress of offenders on community sentences, offering “wraparound” support, including housing, help for addiction issues and mental health.

Tilat Ajmal
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Tilat Ajmal served less than three months


Prisoner leaves with jail on her CV

“I had a job, I ain’t got a job now,” said Tilat Ajmal.

Before she went to prison, Ajmal worked for the NHS as a cleaner for 18 years.

As we filmed, she was leaving jail after serving less than three months for smuggling an item into prison while visiting someone. It was her first offence.

Her bags were packed, and in them was a CV she’d prepared. But she didn’t seem hopeful.

“I think it’s a bit bad having a conviction, I’ve been working all my life,” she said.

“As soon as coming out of them gates, I think you just have hundreds and thousands of things going through your head.”

‘Just enough time to rip their lives apart’

After we filmed at the prison, Sky News joined a support session at a women’s centre in Nottingham. It offers mandatory services to people serving sentences in the community, and also those on probation or licence periods.

I asked a case worker to explain why certain women offenders should be considered unique in the criminal justice system.

“I think what happens when a man goes to prison is that there is usually a woman holding everything together,” said Rachel Strong.

“He will be released from prison, his home will still be there, his family. He may have lost his job but there will be someone there. He will come out to his support network in place.

“That woman is that support network – so when she goes to prison, there’s nobody holding that together. People will lose their homes, sometimes their children are taken into care.

“Usually when women are sent to prison it’s for short sentences. Not enough time for anything productive, just enough time to rip their lives apart.”

Donna Pritchards
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Donna Pritchards

‘It’s like rehab’

“I don’t mind prison, it’s like rehab,” said Donna Pritchards, who has been to HMP Foston Hall three times.

“I know you get clean when you’re here, and I needed it.”

Drugs are ‘main issue’ in prison

Others told us it was “easy” to get hold of drugs inside jail, with one prisoner describing some leading a “life of luxury”, with jail being like a “holiday camp”.

Amanda Brewer, drug strategy lead, told us: “Illicit drugs are our main issue day to day in everything that we do.

“They’re the main drivers for violence, they can cause self-harm issues, they cause vulnerability.”

Prisoners are also “trading” prescription drugs between one another.

‘Prison is not a nice place to be’

As the government explores greater use of alternatives to custody and scrapping certain short prison sentences, I asked the prisons minister whether criminals might see their approach as a “soft touch”.

“Prison is not a nice place to be,” said Lord Timpson, “but they need to turn their lives around there.”

The government commissioned the sentencing review alongside the creation of the Women’s Justice Board because they have an overcrowding crisis across the prison estate. But they also fundamentally believe prison isn’t the best form of punishment for certain types of offenders.

Women offenders in England and Wales are likely to be disproportionately impacted by the recommendations made in the review.

That’s because we expect it to suggest the scrapping of certain short sentences. In 2022, the Prison Reform Trust found over half (58%) of terms given to women were for less than six months.

Women are also considered by ministers to be a “vulnerable” group, with prison having a knock-on impact on their lives and potential for reoffending. Many report being a victim of crimes like domestic abuse, and 55% of female prisoners are mothers.

After two days of rare and unique access to different parts of the criminal justice system, it’s clear many feel prison isn’t working for female offenders. But what exactly a greater use of alternatives to custody looks like will take some time to figure out.

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The King and Queen unveil new portraits commemorating their coronation

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The King and Queen unveil new portraits commemorating their coronation

New portraits of the King and Queen, commissioned to commemorate their coronation in 2023, have been unveiled.

The two separate full-length paintings of Charles and Camilla were made by artists Peter Kuhfeld and Paul Benny, respectively.

King Charles and Queen Camilla unveil their official Coronation State Portraits during a visit to the National Gallery.
Pic Reuters
Image:
Pic: Reuters

The artists were personally chosen by the King and Queen, who were joined at the unveiling by Camilla’s daughter Laura Lopes.

Mr Kuhfeld, who has known the monarch for more than 40 years, added he hopes his depiction of Charles captured both “the man and the King”.

Mr Benny also said about the Queen: “She said nothing but wonderful things about it, more importantly Laura liked it – you know when the kids like it, you’re probably on the right track.”

Pic: PA PORTRAIT
Pic: PA PORTRAIT
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Pics: PA

Their portraits will be hung in the National Gallery until 5 June, before moving to their permanent home in Buckingham Palace’s Throne Room.

On 6 May two years ago, the monarch and his wife were crowned at Westminster Abbey, in a ceremony watched by millions.

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Charles, 76, was the country’s longest-serving heir to the throne, ascending after Queen Elizabeth II died in September 2022.

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He vowed at the time: “That promise of lifelong service I renew to you all today.”

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